Peek Mobile E-mail Device (Cherry) - AB01CH

BETTER THAN EXPECTED

4/25/2009

AT FIRST IT WAS SLIGHTLY DIFFICULT TO GET SET UP,THEN ONCE CUSTOMER SUPPORT ANSWERED A FEW QUESTIONS MY DAUGHTER WAS ON HER WAY TO TEXTING AND RECEIVING HER EMAILS... SHE USES THE PEEK FOR CONTACTING ME INSTEAD OF THE CELL. THE TURN AROUND IN RECEIVING RESPONSES BACK WAS LESS THAN A MINUTE.

Discontinuing service after five months -- product just not ready for prime time

3/16/2009

I purchased a Peek last year based on a favorable review in the Wall Street Journal. I was looking for a mobile email solution to replace my Blackberry (which was provided by my company and stayed behind when I changed jobs). I liked several aspects of the Peek, relative to a Blackberry or other smartphones. In a nutshell:

+ The device does not require a service contract. If you don't like it, you can discontinue the service. You can also reactivate the service later if you choose to. Peek service offers an unprecedented level of flexibility.

+ Having a separate device for email, rather than a single smartphone for both voice and email, appealed to me. I carry my cell phone all the time, but don't always need email. The Peek allowed me to carry a very small cell phone all the time and a larger email device only when I needed it.

+ The full keyboard on the Peek, which reminds me of the original Blackberry, is much more efficient than trying to tap out messages on a cell phone keypad.

+ Peek email service is relatively cheap, at $20 per month.

+ The Peek allowed me to synch up with three separate email accounts and did not require forwarding copies of messages to the device like some solutions do.

That was the promise. I would still love the Peek if the device had lived up to that promise. In reality, unfortunately, the value of the device was undercut badly by a series of serious reliability and quality problems. Specifically:

- The device very often cannot get a radio signal. This is obviously a huge issue. As another reviewer pointed out, coverage is very spotty.

- The Peek routinely stops receiving messages, but it provides no indication that this has happened. As a result, you don't know whether you haven't received any messages, or whether people have been sending you messages but the Peek just doesn't know it. On multiple occasions, I missed important messages because the Peek looked like it was active but in fact had stopped receiving messages. An email message from the Peek CEO to all users said that best way to make sure you had received all messages was to turn the device off and back on, but rebooting the device all throughout the day just isn't practical. This reliability issue was a real show stopper for me.

- There can be a significant delay (even when the device is working) between when messages are sent and when they arrive on the Peek.

- The device itself, while slim and with a nice bright screen, has significant quality issues. The cursor wheel that controls the device suffers from a noticeable lag -- you have to spin it and spin it before the cursor starts to move. In addition to being an annoyance (in this day and age, we expect electronics devices to respond without a lag), it can cause real problems. For example, on multiple occasions I unintentionally deleted or sent messages because I clicked the cursor wheel a second time, thinking that I hadn't clicked it all the way the first time. To get an idea of what it's like trying to use the Peek cursor wheel (which is key to using the Peek), imagine how hard it would be to use your computer if clicking on an object on screen with your mouse sometimes did what you wanted, sometimes didn't, and sometimes did but with a three-second delay. It can cause real problems day to day.

- The Peeksters (as the employees at Peek call themselves) are wonderful folks who mean well, but they don't seem to have the capacity to follow up on problems effectively. In trying to solve the reliability problems, I had multiple individuals at Peek offer to do something then drop the ball and not follow through.

After five months of using the device and hoping that things would get better, I finally decided to cut my losses and discontinue the service. I hope Peek solves these quality problems. They seem like great folks and the Peek is a neat concept, but the problems are serious enough that Peek email just isn't worth the price at this point.

A FRIEND LET ME USE HER'S

2/11/2009

LOVE IT DECIDED TO BUY. TODAYS MY LUCKY DAY THERE BUY ONE GET ONE FREE PLUS FREE SHIPPING CANT BEAT IT. WHAT A DEAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

At last.... Elegant Simplicity

2/5/2009

I love my little Peek. After trying smartphones and pdas, I finally went back to a relatively simple phone and note cards. The Peek satisfies my need for email on the go without strapping me to a ridiculously expensive contract.

The email only device boasts a nice display and an ample keyboard so it is easy to actually use the device on the go. It is much better for me to have two devices. I don't know how or why people like multitasking on tiny barbie sized screens.

The PEEK makes thing simple.

Good-but-flawed...

1/30/2009


Almost every "professional" review I read about the Peek completely missed the point of it. Reviewers go on-and-on about it being for grandmothers (or the tech.-averse) and over-priced "for what it is") glibly referencing comparable data plans from Sprint, Verizon and others). Hello, have you actually PRICED a data plan from a major carrier lately?!? I think all these iPhone- and Blackberry-loving yo-yos simply feed off the corporate plan. Do any of them actually pay for their plan themselves?!?

Five minutes' research indicates you can't beat Peek's $19.95/month for love or money. It's just that simple. I don't WANNA pay $60/70/80+ month for my service! THAT'S INSANE!

Would I prefer an iPhone or Blackberry? Whatever. I like paying that $19.95 bill, though, along with my $9 cellphone bill, $19 unlimited Vonage VOIP, and cheap streamed movies from Netflix!

That said, the Peek as a device is totally Gen-1. Screen/keyboard are okay, but:
1) It is indeed quite pokey. Cursor sometimes unresponsive
2) No security whatsoever. That's unconscionable!
3) Primitive navigation
4) Text on some incoming messages sometimes "invisible"
5) Battery life is mediocre
6) No third-party batteries available
7) Micro-USB port is "okay," but should certainly include a USB charging cable

...Etc.

It's great for what it is: inexpensive mobile e-mail. But it's not a great device